Reply by PurpLev

a #5 is the jack of all trades, its small and light enough and can be set to smooth surfaces and it is long enough to kinda to jointing and flattening of surfaces (although compared to a #7 you would have to do more manual work and check surfaces for flat more often). older stanleys are good candidates as they are not too expensive.

mind you, LN LV Stanley or anything else – you will also have to develop sharpening skills or hand planing will seem very unfriendly and can become a hassle real fast. with a good setup and sharp tool it’s a pleasure to work though.

With that said – I would suggest getting a dedicated smoother #4 and a dedicated jointer #7 so that you’ll spend less time fiddling with changing the setting on a #5 and just have 1 plane setup properly and ready to work. initial cost will be higher but you’ll get to work WITH the planes more than work ON them that way.